Friday, 17 April 2009

Reports of the preemptive surface dressing of Hilsdon and Southdown Roads have, like those of Mark Twain's death in the 19th century, been greatly exaggerated.

Barely had the wide-bellied construction workers unloaded their signs and road closure barriers than they were gone, leaving Westbury's favourite cut-through (with the possible exception of Chock Lane) once again open to non-residents and - more to the point - undressed.

We the people can only speculate as to the meaning of this week's strange events. One theory exercising the men folk of the neighbourhood as they debate the great matters of state at the Prince of Wales on Stoke Lane is that the crew who arrived and disapeared wtihin 48 hours at the start of the week were in fact not the surface dressing team but the surface measuring team.

If so, we can presumably expect the surface dressing team to arrive and dress the surfaces sometime between May and September - the time frame stated on the original yellow signs whose appearance this week casued such a stir among the local citzens.